Ibrahim Mahama hasn't asked me to delete portions of my book - Azure

Investigative journalist, Manasseh Azure Awuni has rejected media claims that the Chief Executive Officer of Engineers & Planners, Ibrahim Mahama, has given him up to seven days to erase several sections from his current book that degrade his image.

His response was to Mr Mahama's lawyers' demand that he withdraw and apologise for several erroneous assertions he made in his latest book, 'The President Ghana Never Got', or face legal action.

According to the book, the Universal Merchant Bank (UMB), formerly known as Merchant Bank, was controversially sold to the private equity firm Fortiz in 2013.

The author reported that FirstRand Bank of South Africa offered GH₵176 million for 75% of Merchant Bank's shares, whereas Fortiz only offered GH₵90 million for 90% of the state-owned bank's shares.

"The controversy deepened when it emerged that a brother of President John Mahama, Ibrahim Mahama, was one of the big debtors of the then Merchant Bank, which resulted in the bank’s struggles,” portions of the book read.

In reaction to these allegations, Mr Ibrahim Mahama, through his counsel, is demanding a retraction of the publication and an apology, claiming that the material was incorrect.

Below is the Notice from Ibrahim Mahama's lawyers to Manasseh Azure Awuni;

NOTICE TO MANASSEH AZURI AWUNI FROM LAWYERS OF MR. IBRAHIM MAHAMA: 

1. Mr. Ibrahim Mahama has never been indebted to Merchant Bank or its successor, UMB Bank. Indeed, our Client has never applied for or received any facility from the said Bank in his personal capacity or for his personal use.

2. Engineers & Planners Company Limited, which is a separate legal entity from our Client, applied for and received a loan facility from Merchant Bank.

3. In February 2014, the amount of $28million was paid by Engineers and Planners Company Ltd to Merchant Bank, in full and final settlement of the loan amount. A copy of the correspondence from Merchant Bank to this effect is attached as Annexure 1.

4. Unfortunately, just like you, most persons have ignorantly persisted in publishing the unfounded allegation of our Client being heavily indebted to Merchant Bank and which indebtedness lead to the sale of the Bank to Fortiz.

5. We recently found out that contrary to the evidence, the persons who took over the majority shares of Merchant Bank and the Management of the Bank, refused to report the fact that the debt had been paid to the Credit Bureau Agencies and the Bank of Ghana and may have even not credited the accounts of the bank with the amounts received from Engineers and Planners.

6. This discovery resulted in Engineers and Planners Company Limited instituting a court action against UMB Bank in 2023 for amongst others the following reliefs:

a. A declaration that the Engineers and Planners has fully paid its debt to UMB Bank.

b. An order for the UMb Bank to write to the Credit Bureau Agencies and Regulatory Agencies confirming that Engineers and Planners has fully paid its debt with the Bank

c. A declaration that the UMB Bank's publication that the Plaintiff is indebted to it is false and unjustifiable.

A copy of the Writ of Summons and Statement of Claim is attached as Annexure 2.

7. After being served with the said Writ of Summons and Statement of Claim, UMB Bank filed a Statement of Defence wherein it admitted that all the debt had been paid and further averred that it had instructed the Credit Bureau Agencies to amend their records accordingly. A copy of the Statement of Defence is attached as Annexure 3.

It is therefore not true that either Mr. Ibrahim Mahama or Engineers and Planners Company Ltd was indebted to Merchant Bank and which debt resulted in the struggles of the bank. Your publication has resulted in our Client's business associates, family and friends inquiring from him the veracity of your claims as the publication has lowered his reputation as an honest businessman in the eyes of well-meaning Ghanaians.

We therefore have the instructions of our Client to demand from you an immediate retraction of the publication under reference and an unqualified apology to our Client.

Needless to add that should you fail, refuse or neglect to obliged the intimations contained in this letter within 7 days of your receipt of same, we shall proceed to seek legal redress against you without further notice to you.

Please be advised accordingly.

Yours faithfully,

BOBBY BANSON Esq.

Meanwhile, The investigative journalist stood by the claims contained in the book, but said he had referred Mr Mahama's demands to his attorneys and that the situation will be resolved soon.

"I have received calls about the news that Ibrahim Mahama has given me seven days to delete pages 89 and 90 of my book because the information is inaccurate. That is not accurate. Mr. Ibrahim Mahama's lawyers have written to me concerning a paragraph of the book in the chapter on the economy. That paragraph says Ibrahim Mahama was indebted to Merchant Bank when it was sold in 2013. His lawyers say it was a company owned by Ibrahim Mahama, Engineers and Planners, which owed the bank, not Ibrahim Mahama. I have forwarded their demands to my lawyers and the matter will be addressed soon" Mr Azure said.

Source : Lead News Online